Patient Satisfaction With Healthcare Services A Critical Review

Abstract

As healthcare systems shift from fee-for-service to alternate payment models, and consumers gain access to more healthcare options, patient satisfaction is becoming increasingly important for the financial performance of healthcare providers and for patient well-being. However, patient satisfaction is a complex construct. To assist researchers and practitioners, the authors provide a critical review of articles published in the Quality Management Journal (QMJ) on the topic of patient satisfaction. The authors employ Golder, Mitra, and Moorman's (2012) seminal integrative framework of quality as a lens through which to evaluate the studies' contributions and shortcomings. They find that prior QMJ research has focused on patient satisfaction from the perspective of the healthcare delivery system. However, less attention has been given to: 1) understanding patients' perceptions of their experiences and how these perceptions affect satisfaction and perceived quality, and 2) identifying patients' expectations of what attributes should be provided during healthcare services. Consequently, widely used measures of satisfaction, including the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems surveys, may be inadequate. The authors' review provides direction for researchers in developing a more comprehensive research agenda for understanding patient satisfaction.

• healthcare industry
• patient satisfaction measurement
• quality practices

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Yann B. Ferrand

Yann B. Ferrand is an assistant professor of operations management in the Department of Management at Clemson University. His primary research interests are in providing innovative solutions in healthcare delivery services through better scheduling and resource allocation, handling uncertainty and variability using optimization, and simulation methodologies. His research has been published in several international journals including Decision Sciences Journal, IIE Transactions on Healthcare Systems Engineering, Interfaces, Annals of Emergency Medicine, Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, and Economic Development Quarterly.

Jennifer Siemens

Jennifer Christie Siemens is associate professor of marketing at Clemson University. She specializes in the area of consumer behavior. Specifically, her research focuses on consumer welfare and public policy, consumer information processing, and consumer responses to advertising. Her research has been published in journals such as the Journal of Business Research, Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, Journal of Interactive Marketing, and Journal of Behavioral Decision Making.

Danny Weathers

Danny Weathers is an associate professor of marketing at Clemson University. He is on the editorial review board of the Journal of Business Research and the Journal of Marketing Analytics. His research, which focuses on measurement, pricing, online marketing, and healthcare, has appeared in a number of journals, including the Journal of Marketing Research, the Journal of Retailing, Decision Support Systems, and the Journal of Business Research.

Lawrence D. Fredendall

Lawrence D. Fredendall is serving as the Trevillian Distinguished Professor of Management at Clemson University. He is a past editor of the Quality Management Journal and has published one book about supply chain management (Basics of Supply Chain Management with E. Hill, St. Lucie Press/APICS Series on Resource Management, 2001) and two books about lean management (An Introduction to Lean Work Design, Volume I: Fundamentals of Lean Operations and Introduction to Lean Work Design, Volume II: Standard Practices and Tools of Lean, with M. Thurer, Business Expert Press, 2016). He also has prior publications in the Quality Management Journal, the Journal of Operations Management, Production Operations Management and Decision Sciences, among others. He is currently active in healthcare research. Fredendall can be reached by email at [email protected].

Yunsik Choi

Ronald G. Pirrallo serves as the vice chair of emergency medicine for academic affairs in the Greenville Health System. He holds appointments as a professor of emergency medicine at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine – Greenville and clinical professor in the Clemson University School of Health Research. Additionally, he is the emeritus director of medical services, Milwaukee County Emergency Medical Services (EMS), and a professor of emergency medicine with the Award of Tenure at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW). He brings these past experiences to the leadership team that will advance the science and emergency medical care at GHS.

Ronald G. Pirrallo

Matthew Bitner is the vice chair of emergency medicine for medical staff affairs and quality at the Greenville Health System since March 2015. He holds appointments as an associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of South Carolina, School of Medicine – Greenville. He has a background in clinical operations, quality, instructional systems design, adult learning strategies, prehospital system design, as well as disaster planning/response. Bitner has served in multiple operational roles, including service line direction and departmental chairman in academic and community medical centers, as well as providing medical oversight for EMS services, police departments, as well as a multijurisdictional 911–communication center. Bitner has a medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine.

Matthew Bitner

Yunsik Choi is a doctoral student in operations management at Clemson University. He earned a master's degree in marketing at Clemson University He is interested in improving healthcare processes and patient satisfaction.